Coin controlled beverage bottle or container vending machines



Oct. 2, 1956 Filed Feb. 24, 1951 R. M. FoUsHEE 2,765,103 com coNTRoLEED BEVERAGE BOTTLE 0R CONTAINER VENDING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. l2.

.nvr/ENTOR.V ROBERT M. FousHEE @X6/wwf .9.

Oct. 2, 1956 R. MI FoUsHEE 2,765,103

COIN CONTROLLED BEVERAGE BOTTLE 0R CONTAINER VENDING MACHINES Filed Feb. 24, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 5S INVENTOR. ROBERT M. FousHEE Oct. 2, 1956 R. M. FOUSHEE v COIN CONTROLLED BEVERAGE BOTTLE OR CONTAINER VENDING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. 24. 1951 FIG. 8.

INVENTOR. ROBERT M. FoUsHEE FIGH.

Oct. 2, 1956 Filed Feb.v 24. 1951 FIG. 5.

E R. M. FousHEE COIN CONTROLLED BEVERAGE BOTTLE OR CONTAINER VENDING MACHINES lll \ lll/lll ll l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l lll l lll H r I 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. ROBERT M. Fousl-IEE United States atent COIN COLLED BEVERAGE BGTTLE R CONTAINER VENDNG MACHNES Robert M. Foushee, St. Louis, Mo., assigner to The Bevco Company, Inc., St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missoun Application February 24, 1951, Serial No. 212,620

Claims. (Ci. 221 133) This invention relates in general to certain new and useful improvements in beverage dispensing equipment and, more particularly, to coin controlled beverage bottle or container vending machines.

lt is one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide beverage dispensing equipment of the type stated which is simple and economical in construction and may be easily and conveniently operated by purchasers in a simple and eiiicient manner It is another object of the present invention to provide a coin controlled bottle or container vending machine in which various types and kinds of beverages may be stored, cooled, and displayed in a readily accessible manually manipulable manner, so that bottles or containers may be selected from any type or group and removed one at a time.

it is an additional object of the present invention to provide a bottle vending machine of the type stated which is readily adaptable for vending bottled beverages and peaked cartons or containers lled with milk, orange juice, and the like.

lt is a further object of the present invention to provide a bottle vending machine having substantially foolproof and tamper-proof coin controlled bottle vending mechanism.

lt is also an object of the present invention to provide a bottle vending machine which can be readily loaded with vendable merchandise and which also has adequate extra storage space in which sparelmerchandise can be kept until needed.

With the above and other objects in view, my invention resides in the novel features of form, construction, arrangement, and combination of parts presently described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings (four sheets) Figure 1 is a perspective view of a beverage bottle and container vending machine constructed in accordance with and embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a fragmetnary sectional view taken along line 2 2 of Figure l;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the interior of the bottle vending machine;

Figures 4 and 5 are fragmentary sectional views taken along lines 4 4 and 5 5, respectively, of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional View similar to Figure 5 illustrating the dispensing mechanism in unlatched or bottle dispensing position;

Figures 7 and 8 are fragmentary sectional views taken along lines 7 7 and 8 8, respectively, of Figure 4;

Figure 9 is a fragmentary sectional View taken along line 9 9 of Figure 5;

Figure l0 is a fragmentary sectional View taken along line 10 10 of Figure 9;

Figure ll is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 11 11 of Figure 6; and

Figure 1,2 is a perspective View of an auxiliary element which may be optionally employed to adapt the machine for handling short cartons.

Referring now in more detail and by reference characters to the drawings, which illustrate a preferred vembodiment of the present invention, A designates a beverage bottle vending machine or box, as it is sometimes called, comprising a front wall 1, end walls 2, 2', a back wall 3, a bottom wall 4, and a hinged counter-balanced lid or top-door 5, all of the hollow-wall type and being conventionally insulated with a thick illler f of cork, glasswool, or other insulative material. The upper margins of the front wall, end walls 2, 2', and back Wall 3 are recessed, as at 6, to provide a relatively broad contact face 7 against which the lid 5 may rest when in closed position. lt will be noted that the width of the face 7 is sufficient so that the usual rubber sealing ring or gasket, which is conventionally employed in boxes of this type, can be eliminated. Internally the box Ais provided in its lower right-hand portion (reference being had to Figure l) with a false end wall 8 and a false bottom wall 9, providing a compartmentalized enclosure 10 for housing the compressor C and related refrigerative equipment, the latter being entirely conventional in construction and kind. The refrigerative equipment will, of course, include a condenser and fan (not separately shown), which will vent through a grill 11 in the end Wall 2. It will, of course, be understood that this grill 11 may be placed in any convenient location other than the end wall 2, if so desired, and that the compartmentforming walls S, 9, are suitably insulated to prevent transmittal of heat into the interior of the box A. The refrigerative equipment is conventionally connected to cooling coils 12, which are appropriately soldered or otherwise suitably secured interiorly within the walls 1, 2, 2', 3, so that the inner faces thereof become cold walls, so to speak, and achieve the desired cooling effect.

Spotwelded or otherwise rigidly secured upon the inner faces of the front wall 1 and rear Wall 3 are horizontally aligned pairs of angle rails 13, 13', upon which may be optionally placed a series of expanded metal shelf-forming sections 14, 15, 16. The shelf-sections 14, 15, 16, can thus be optionally stored in the bodies of the boxes or set up on the rails 13, 13', as shown in dotted lines in Figure 7 for purposes presently to be more fully described.

Also secured upon the inner faces of the front wall 1 and rear wall 3, preferably by means of screws 17, are stud-plates 18, 19, having reinforcing collars 20 and inwardly projecting horizontal pins 21. It should be noted that there are four such stud-plates, the studplates 18 on the front wall 1 being arranged in horizontal alignment with the corresponding stud-plates 19 on the rear Wall 3, so that the pins 21 all lie inthe same horizontal plane and are arranged in axially aligned pairs on the opposite or opposing interior faces of the walls 1, 3. Provided for shiftable and swingabledisposition upon the pins 21 is a bottle rack 22 consisting of a plurality of spaced parallel horizontal rails 23 connected by two transversely extending parallel crossbars 24, each having depending castellations 25 to which the rails 23 are spotwelded or otherwise suitably fixed. The rails 23 extend lengthwise of the interior of the box or vending machine A just below the top thereof and are so arranged that the width of the spaces or slots :x between opposing edges of the rails 23 are of a width slightly greater than the smallest diameter of the necks of the bottles b to be accommodated and vended, so that the customer may slide any selected bottle freely through the slot x in which it is located. If it is desired to vend milk or orange juice, which is ordinarily sold in peaked paper cartons c, the shelf-sections 14, 15, 16, may be placed on the rails 13, 13, as shown in dotted vending lines in Figure 7, so that the top seams project through the slots x for convenient gripping between the fingers of the purchaser. The shelf-sections 14, 15, 16, are not needed, however, to support the bottles b since they can Yswing fully from the neck and the ,shelf thus becomes necessary only for cartons c. When not needed, the shelf-sections 14, 15, 16, may be stored in the bottom of the box A, as shown in full lines in Figure 7.

The bottle rack 22 is provided with four depending anges 26, 26', 27, 27', respectively arranged in horizontal transversely aligned pairs for registration with the respective pins 21. It will be noted in this connection that the flanges 26,26', are provided with horizontal slots 28 opening laterally toward the flanges 27, 27 and being adapted for slidable and releasable engagement with the left-hand pair of pins 21 (reference being had to Figure 4). The flanges 27, 27', on the other hand, are provided with closed-ended slots 29 which are slidable but nonreleasably engaged with the right-hand pair of pins 21.

Thus the bottle rack can be shifted leftward until the anges 26, 26', are disengaged from the pins 21, whereupon the bottle rack 22 may be swung upwardly about theright-hand pair of pins 21 as pivots, so as to obtain free accessrto the interior of the box A for loading or any ,other desired purpose. is such that, when the bottle rack is shifted leftward to released position, the lower or overhanging downwardly presented margin 30 of the slot 2S will still rest .on the left-hand pair of pins 2,1, so that the bottle rack 22 will, even in released position, be supported horizontally and will not accidentally fall downwardly. At its left margin or extremity, the bottle rack 22 terminates along a line spaced a substantial distance inwardly from the inner face of the end wall 2', as best seen in Figure 3, and for purposes presently more lfully appearing. will also be understood that the `bottle rack 22 is disposed in a plane spaced downwardly from the top plane of the box or vending machine A by sulcient distance so that the .upper margins of the bars 24 will lie below the .downwardly presented or under faceof the top or lid 5.

Spotwelded or otherwise rigidly secured upon the inner face of the wall 2' is a bracket plate 31 bent at right angles to provide a dat leg 32 disposed in spaced parallel relation .to the inner face of the rear wall 3 and being provided with ahorizontal slot 33 adapted to receive the rearward end of a iiller plate 34 extending substantially across the space between the bottle rack 22 and the end wall ,2' and Ybetween the front wall 1 and rear wall 3, terminating at its forward edge in `rearwardly spaced relation to `the inner face ofthe front wall, as shown in Figure 3. Along its right-hand margin, the ller plate 34 is bent angularly downwardly and is spaced from the end of the bottle rack 22 by'a distance slightly greater .than the smallest diametral size of the lbottle necks so as to provide atransversely extending communication or cross Yslot y for the bottles b and containers c. By reference to Figure 3, it will be thus seen that the bottles b and containers c, when selected by the purchaser, can be slid to the-left from any one of the slots x into the transversely extending communication or cross slot y and thence forwardly lfor vending purposes. The filler plate 34 Yis finally vprovided adjacent its rearwardr margin with a projecting abutment clip 35 bent in somewhat U-shaped Vfashion Vfrom a suitable section of strip stock and being adapted, when the ller plate 34 Vis inV operavtive position, to abut endwise against the -rearmost rail 23, so as to prevent unauthorized leftward shifting movement of the bottle rack 22. Adjacent its forward end, the filler plate 34 is provided with a short rectangular aperture 36 for embracing engagement with an upwardly l:projecting lock-tongue Y37 which extends at its upper end through the slot 36 and is apertured for receiving a conventional padlock 3,8. The lock-tongue V37 is vspotwelded to an L-shaped vending plate 3 9 which is disposed in'rearwardly spaced parallel relation to the inwardly vpresented The length of the slot 29 face of the front wall 1 and is integrally provided along its upper margin with a forwardly turned L-shaped flange 40 upon which the forward margin of the filler plate 34 will rest when in locked or operative position, as best seen in Figure 5.

The vending plate 39 is integrally provided along its lower margin with a forwardly extending horizontal shelflike member 41, which is, in turn, bent downwardly at its forward margin to provide a ange 42 for suitable securement to a large ange-like section 43 of an L-shaped corner bracket 44, which is secured to the inner faces of the walls 1, 2', in the forward left-hand corner of the vending machine A adjacent the upper ends thereof. Mounted upon and extending horizontally outwardly from the inner face of the wall 2' and in facewise abutment against the under face of the shelf-like member 41, is an auxiliary shelf 41'.

lt will be noted by reference to Figure 3 that the slots x are narrow/,enough to hold up any bottles which may slip out of the lingers of the purchaser, and the member 41' is wide enough to extend beneath the communication slot y so as to catch and support a bottle b which might accidentally slip from the purchasers fingers. The iiange-like section 43 is provided, upon its inwardly presented face, with three large-headed studs 45, two of which are horizontally aligned and located toward the top of the box A, the other being located below and midway between the upper two. The studs 45 project through registering slots 46 formed in a dat central or web section 47 of a U-shaped actuator slide 48, the latter having integrally formed vertical side flanges 49, the rearward margins of which are extended angularly inwardly, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, and are provided with an angular camming slot 5? terminating at its upper ends in a vertical run 51.

The central web member 47 is further provided Yad-` jacent its lower extremity with a pair Vof spaced parallel slots 52 through which project bearing ears 53 struck up from the ange member 43 of the corner bracket 44. Mounted in and extending horizontally between the bearing ears 53 is a pivot pin 54 disposed rotatably through ears 55 formed on the lower ends of Ia latch plate S6. At its upper end, the latch plate 56 is curled over, as at 57, and provided with a horizontal pin 5,8 having axially projecting diametrally reduced end portions 59 disposed loosely through and in the camming slots 5b. Also rockably disposed upon the end portions 59 of the pin 58 by means `of downturned ears 60 is an angularly upwardly and forwardly disposed closure plate 61.

The vertical run 51 of the camming slot 50 is located a sufficient distance rearwardly from the inner face of the front wall l, so that the center line of the pin 5S and the curved portion 57 of the plate 56, to which it is attached, will be spaced forwardly from the ange 40 by a suiicient distance to loosely accommodate the neck of the bottle b. This distance, however, is Vmuch smaller than the overall diameter of the main portion of the bottle b, so that the bottle b cannot be manually pulled upwardly kpast Vthe knuckle formed by the curved portion 57 when the locking plate 56 is in the position shown in Figure 5.

The actuator slide 4S is provided at its upper end with` a U-s'haped handle 62 and at its lower end the web section extends integrally downwardly and is bent in inwardly to provide a horizontal foot'ange 63 to which is welded a rectangular elevator plate 64 adapted `to rest atwise upon the ange 41 of the plate 39 and slide upwardly and downwardly freely with respect thereto. The actuator slide 48 is also integrally providedfwith a laterally extending tongue 65' having a rearwardly projecting pin 66 operatively located in a slot 67,forn1ed yin the lower end of a crank arm 68, which is, in turn, provided at its other end with a rectangular aperture 69 for non-rotative engagement upon the inwardly projecting Square end 70 and projecting forwardly through the front -wall 1 into a coin controlled locking mechanism M mounted upon the outer or front face of the wall 1 and being of any con- Ventional design or construction. It will, of course, be understood in this connection that the coin controlled locking mechanism M will operate when a coin of the proper denomination is deposited therein to disengage the lock-shaft 71, so that it is free to rotate. The actuator slide 48 can then be pulled upwardly and the bottle b resting upon the elevator plate 64 will be shifted upwardly and at the same time the plate 56 will be swung inwardly out of the way to the position shown in Figure 6, so that the bottle b may be lifted by the purchaser.

Also pivotally mounted upon and carried by the pin 53 is a closure arm or plate 72 which normally hangs downwardly along the inside face of the right-hand member 49 in a more or less vertical position. Adjacent the lower extremity of the closure arm 72, the rearward margin of the member 49 is cut away to provide a recess 73 to clear a laterally projecting pin 74, which is mounted in the lower end of the closure arm 72 and projects operatively through an elongated slot 75 formed in the upper end of a link 76, which is, in turn, pivoted at its lower end upon the lower end of the member 49.

Thus, when the actuator slide 48 is pulled upwardly, the pin SS is shifted inwardly through the action of the camming slot 50. At the same time, the lower end of the member 49 to which the link 76 is pivoted moves upwardly and the combined effect of this upward movement and the inward swinging movement of the pivot pin 5S causes the link 76 to swing outwardly and, consequently, the closure arm 72 will be swung outwardly into the position shown in Figure 6 to prevent any further bottle b from being shifted from the bottle rack 22 into the dispensing mechanism for unauthorized removal. It will be evident that the closure arm 72 insures that only one bottle at a time can be removed, so that the purchaser cannot obtain two or more bottles of beverage for the price of one.

When the bottle b has been removed by the purchaser and the handle 62 is released, the actuator slide 48 will drop under its own weight and all its associated mechanism will return to the position shown in Figure 5. At the same time, the locking shaft 71 will return to its initial position and become locked again within the locking mechanism M. When it is desired to load the machine, the padlock 38 is unlocked and removed so that the filler plate 34 can be taken out. Removal of the ller plate aords access to the lower interior portions of the box A, so that bottles which are stored in such lower region can be lifted up and slid into the bottle rack 22 by way of replacement of bottles which have been sold. Removal of the filler plate 34 also frees the bottle rack 22, so that it may be shifted and swung upwardly for more convenient loading, if desired.

Provided for auxiliary use in adapting the mechanism to vend milk cartons c is a U-shaped rectangular platform 77 having vertical legs 78 bent inwardly at their lower extremities in the formation of anges 79 adapted to rest upon the elevator plate 64. The platform 77 is provided, at its four corners, with apertures 80 through which a screwdriver or other suitable tool may be inserted to engage fastening screws 81 disposed through apertures S2 in the anges 79 and threadedly engaged in tapped holes 83 formed in the elevator plate 64. When secured in place, the platform 77 is located upwardly from the elevator plate 64 and properly supports a milk container c, as shown in dotted lines in Figure 5.

It should be understood that changes and modifications in the form, construction, arrangement, and combination of the several parts of the beverage dispensing equipment may be made and substituted for those herein shown and described without departing from the nature and principle of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A beverage vending machine comprising a rectilinear cabinet having opposed parallel end walls and opposed parallel side walls, a swingable top closure, a pair of endwise aligned pivot-forming pins rigidly mounted in and projecting horizontally inwardly from said side walls, a pair of endwise aligned support-forming pins rigidly mounted in and projecting horizontally inwardly from said side walls, a bottle rack having iirst and second pairs of depending ears, the iirst pair of ears being provided with elongated apertures shiftably and rotatably engaged upon the pivot-forming pins, the second pair of ears being provided with elongated hook-forming apertures for optional engagement and disengagement with the support-forming pins whereby the rack is shiftably mounted in and is adapted to extend horizontally across` the interior of the cabinet in downwardly spaced parallel relation to the top closure element when the latter is in closure-forming position, said bottle rack consisting of a plurality of spaced rails, the spaces between adjacent rails being of a width slightly greater than the smallest diametral size of the neck of a beverage bottle so that beverage bottles may be swingably suspended between said rails, said bottle rack further terminating in inwardly spaced relation to an end wall of the cabinet, a plate removably disposed between said last-mentioned wall and the end of the bottle rack and having one `of its longitudinal margins parallel to the pivot-forming pins and spaced outwardly from the transverse margin of the rack when the latter is in horizontal position and its hook-forming ears are engaged with the support pins to provide a transversely extending communication slot into which a bottle selected from any one of the spaces in the bottle rack can be slid and thence shifted transversely of the bottle rack, a lock for optionally securing said plate in such position and means interposed between the rack and the plate for abutment against a portion of the bottle rack when the rack and plate are in operative position within the cabinet to prevent unauthorized movement of the rack when the plate is locked in place.

2. A beverage vending machine comprising a rectilinear cabinet having opposed parallel end walls and opposed parallel side walls, a swingable top closure, a pair of endwise aligned pivot-forming pins rigidly mounted in and projecting horizontally inwardly from said side walls, a pair of endwise aligned support-forming pins rigidly mounted in and projecting horizontally inwardly from said side walls, a bottle rack having first and second pairs of depending ears, the iirst pair of ears being provided with elongated apertures shiftably and rotatably engaged upon the pivot-forming pins, the second pair of ears being provided with elongated hook-forming apertures for optional engagement and disengagement with the support-forming pins whereby the rack is shiftably and swingably mounted in and is adapted to extend horizontally across the interior of the cabinet in downwardly spaced parallel relation to the top closure element when the latter is in closure-forming position, said bottle rack consisting of a plurality of spaced rails, the spaces between adjacent rails being yof a width slightly greater than the smallest diametral size Vof the neck of a beverage bottle so that beverage bottles may be swingably suspended between said rails, said bottle rack further terminating in inwardly spaced relation to an end wall of the cabinet, a plate removably disposed between said lastmentioned wall and the end of the bottle rack and having one of its longitudinal margins parallel to the pivotforming pins and spaced outwardly from the transverse margin of the rack when the latter is in horizontal position and its hook-forming ears are engaged with the support pins to provide a transversely extending communication slot into which a bottle selected from any one of the spaces in the bottle rack can be slid and thence shifted transversely of the bottle rack, a lock for optionally securing said plate in such position, and a rigid element forming a part of the plate and projecting out- Y7 wardly therefrom for abutment against a portion of the bottle rack when the rack and plate are in operative position within the cabinet to prevent unauthorized movement of the rack when the plate is locked in place,

3. For use in a beverage vending machine, a dispensing mechanism for receiving and delivering a single bottle, said mechanism including an open-topped compartment having a laterally presented bottle-receiving passageway, a vertically shiftable elevator-plate operatively mounted within the compartment and being adapted to receive and support the bottle to be delivered, a slide operatively connected to the plate and having an upwardly extending handle adapted to be gripped and manipulated by the purchaser to shift the elevator-plate upwardly and downwardly, a latch-plate pivotally mounted at its lower end adjacent to lthe lower end of the compartment, said latch-plate extending angularly upwardly and inwardly so as to project partially across the opening `of the compartment when the elevator-plate is in downward position whereby to block the upward shifting movement of a bottle resting upon the plate, means operatively connecting the latch plate to the slide for rocking the latch-plate away from its initial position and :out of the path of upward movement of the bottle on the elevator-plate when the slide is moved upwardly, an arm swingably mounted across the passageway compartment, a link rockably mounted at its lower end adjacent the bottom of the compartment by means of a pivot carried by the slide, said link being provided adjacent its upper end with an elongated slot-like aperture, a pin pivotally and slidably mounted in said aperture, said pin also being connected to said arm, and means operatively connecting said arm to the slide so that when the slide is shifted upwardly the arm will be swung outwardly across said passageway to prevent a second bottle from being shifted into the compartment while the bottle which is already in the compartment is being removed therefrom.

4. For use in a beverage vending machine, a dispensing mechanism for receiving and delivering a bottle, said mechanism having an upwardly presented bottle-dispensing opening and a laterally presented bottle-receiving opening, a vertically shiftable element operatively mounted within the mechanism, a handle roperatively associated with said element whereby it may optionally be moved up and down, a horizontal plate operatively associated with said element for up and down movement therewith, said plate being located beneath the bottledispensing opening and being adapted, when in downward shifted position, to support a Abottle in upright position with its neck presented upwardly toward the dispensing opening, a retractible member normally disposed across the opening adjacent to the neck of Vsaid bottle for preventing unauthorized manual removal of the bottle, cam means operatively connecting the vertically Vshiftahle element and the retractible member, said ca rn means adapted 'to Vretract the Vretractible member on upward movement of the vertically shiftable element, and a pivoted vertical plate actuable responsive to movement of the vertically shiftable element for blocking entry of a second bottle through the bottle-receiving opening into the dispensing mechanism while the vertically shiftable element is in bottle-dispensing position.

5. For use in a beverage vending machine, a dispensing mechanism for receiving and delivering a single bottle, said mechanism including a compartment having a lateraliy presented bottlereceiving opening and an upwardly presented bottle-dispensing opening, a vertically shiitable elevator-plate operatively mounted within the compartment and being adapted to receive and support the bottle to be delivered, a slide operatively connected to the plate and having an upwardly extending handle adapted to be gripped and manipulated by the purchaser to shift the elevatorfplate upwardly and downwardly, a latchplate pivotally mounted at its lower end adjacent to the lower end of the compartment, said latch-plate extending angularly upwardly and inwardly so as to project partially across the opening .of the compartment when t'ne elevator-plate is in downward position whereby to block the upward shifting movement of a bottle resting upon the elevator plate, means `operatively connecting the latch-plate to the slide for rocking the latch-plate away from its initial position and out of the path of upward movement Yof the bottle on the elevator-plate when the slide is moved upwardly, an arm swingably mounted across the compartment, and means operatively connecting said arm to the slide so that when the slide is shifted upwardly the arm will be swung outwardly to prevent a second bottle from being moved through the bottle-receiving opening into the compartment while the bottle which is already in the compartment is being removed therefrom.

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